The Foxconn deal and the budget are the hot issues right now and that is what the focus of most of state government is. The Joint Finance Committee will be meeting on August 24th, the first time since June, so there hasn’t been much movement on the legislation we, as an organization, have been following. So here is a quick update for July/August:

Protective Status Bill: There hasn’t been much movement on this bill. The author, Representative Born, is waiting for the revised draft of this bill from the drafting attorney. Hopefully this will be soon and it can start to be circulated for legislative co-sponsors.

Asset Forfeiture: There is no new information on this bill since the last report. As you may recall, the Senate Committee on Labor held a hearing in May however, no vote has been scheduled. The Assembly Committee on State Affairs has yet to schedule a public hearing.

WRS Changes: There is no new information on his bill since the last report. No committee hearing has been scheduled.

Survivor’s Benefits: There hasn’t been much movement on this bill as the author has been waiting for a revised fiscal estimate from the Dept. of Revenue. The Senate Committee plans to hold a hearing this fall; the Chair of the Assembly Committee on Insurance has indicated he will not hold a hearing unless the fiscal estimate is lowered. Our lobbyists, have been working with the bill’s authors in gathering them information to submit to the Dept. of Revenue so the fiscal estimate is more reflective of the actual costs.

Those are the “Priority Issue Bills” we have been monitoring closely. There are numerous other bills both committees from WS&DSA and BSSA are monitoring however, with Foxconn and the budget being the priority of the legislature, there isn’t much more to report on the other issues.

If you happen to have any questions on any of these bills or others found in the tracking report, don’t hesitate to contact myself or one of the committee members and we can hopefully answer your questions. If not, we can usually find the answer.

I hope everybody has a safe and happy Labor Day weekend and I will post more information on this page when it becomes available.